List of most commonly prescibed meds, please

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I am a humble 1st year student. I am asking all you practicing nurses for some help. I (for my own learning, not assignments) want to start a list of meds in a notebook. I will list them by brand and generic names, classification, etc. so I can get a jump start on next year. I am asking for you to simply post the names of meds that you encounter the most in day to day nursing, I will dig out the details from texts. I figure, why not start with the ones prescribed the most? Any help will be much appreciated!! Thanks :)

Didn't see these, which I give a lot:

Miralax

Go-lytely

ampicillin

ceftriaxone

gentamicin

carafate

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Morphine

Morphine

Morphine and

morphine...

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Specializes in Oncology.
Morphine

Morphine

Morphine and

morphine...

I didn't know you worked in Hospice.

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Specializes in being a Credible Source.

To blondy's excellent list I'll add a few that I give pretty regularly:

nifedipine

spironolactone

diltiazem

phenytoin

memantine

donepezil

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If I were to do the same thing as you, where would I find how to classify them? I, too am interested in getting ahead of my peers so I am better able to focus on the really hard stuff.

What do yall think the best way to do this is? and OP, good job of thinking ahead! You and I should be friends...lol...

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A good place to start is learning the classes of medications first. For example, ACE inhibitors, beta-blockers, fluroquinilones, opioids, etc. Then, when you look a med up and are familiar with it's classification, you'll already know quite a bit about it, and will only need to focus on information specific to the drug.

It's much easier than trying to learn a bunch of specific drugs.

where do I find the classes of medications? I think that sounds more like the way I think...

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Specializes in cardiac-telemetry, hospice, ICU.

I plan on starting with my Davis drug guide for nurses. Most of the info is in there. Then other texts, and of course, always the 'net.

This will be very helpful for sure, especially when I need to make drug cards for clinical patients, and of course, exams.

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Specializes in being a Credible Source.

The best way that I found to learn drug classes was to use Lippincott's Illustrated Review of Pharmacology

It has them broken down into neatly classified tables and charts.

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Specializes in Oncology.
To blondy's excellent list I'll add a few that I give pretty regularly:

nifedipine

spironolactone

diltiazem

phenytoin

memantine

donepezil

Just goes to show how different this will be on specialty. I give diltiazem often, phenytoin somewhat regularly and have given spironolactone a handful of times, but other than that, almost never give any of those drugs.

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I am a humble 1st year student. I am asking all you practicing nurses for some help. I (for my own learning, not assignments) want to start a list of meds in a notebook. I will list them by brand and generic names, classification, etc. so I can get a jump start on next year. I am asking for you to simply post the names of meds that you encounter the most in day to day nursing, I will dig out the details from texts. I figure, why not start with the ones prescribed the most? Any help will be much appreciated!! Thanks :)

I'll bite:

Anticoagulants/antiplatelets:

Heparin

Lovenox

Coumadin (warfarin)

Bivalrudin

Aspirin

plavix (clopidogrel)

Blood pressure:

ACEi's- captopril, lisinopril, enalapril

ARB's- losartan, valsartan

Other heart meds

Beta-blockers (olol)- labetolol, carvedilol, atenolol, propranolol

Calcium channel blockers- verapamil, nifedepine, amlodipine, nicardipine, diltiazem

Vadodilators- nitroglycerin, nitroprusside

Pressors- Dopamine, dobutamine, norepinephrine

Statins- atorvastatin, rosuvastatin

Fibrates- finofibrate

Cholesterol binders- ezetimbe, cholestyramine

Lung meds

Albuterol, salmeterol

Ipratropium, tiotropium

Advair (fluticasone/salmeterol combo)

Symbicort (budesonide/formoterol combo)

GI meds

Anti-acids H2 blockers- ranitidine, famotidine

Anti-acids PPIs- omeprazole, esomeprazole, lansoprazole

Bowel preps- mag citrate, polyethylene glycol

Constipation- docusate, senna, miralax, lactulose, enemas

Diarrhea- loperamide

antinausea- ondansetron, promethazine, prochlorperazine

Kidney meds

Diuretics- furosemide, hydrochlorothiazide, spironolactone, acetazolamide

Endocrine

Diabetes- metformin, insulin (lantus, aspart)

Thyroid- levothyroxine

Steroids (glucocorticoids)- prednisone dexamethasone, hydrocortisone, methylprednisone,

GU meds

antispasmodics- oxybutinin, tolteridine (detrol) solifenacin (vesicare)

BPH meds- doxazosin, tamsulosin, finasteride

ED meds- sildenafil, tadalafil

Neuro

Alzheimers- donepezil (aricept)

Seizures- valproate, levetiracetame, phenytoin, topirimate

Benzos- lorazepam, diazepam,

Agitation- benzos (lorazepam, valium), haloperidol,

Pain meds

Opiates- oxycodone, hydrocodone, morphine, fentanyl

NSAIDs- ibuprofen, ketorolac

Other- trazodone, cyclobenzaprine, lidocaine patches

Headaches- fiorocet, sumatriptan, metoclopramide

Gout- allopurinol, colchicine

Psych meds and antibiotics are too numerous to name

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Specializes in cardiac-telemetry, hospice, ICU.

Wowza (and others) Thank you so much for your efforts. Thanks to you guys, I will have a list to keep me busy for a while!

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Specializes in Pediatric Cardiology.

This is a great idea to get ahead! We always ended up need to make drug cards in nursing school, having it handy will save you time.

I am a private duty nurse and only give a few medications but here they are:

Colazal

Depakote

Klonopin

Clonidine

Chloral Hydrate

Vancomycin

Flagyl

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